A great client experience to share

Lately we’ve had many customers tell us how happy they are after we repair their computer.  Their friends come in on referrals, etc.  As we grow as a team, we polish our computer repair strategies and systems, striving to ensure that every job is done efficiently, effectively and to the client’s satisfaction.

Today one in particular stood out.  A client from six years ago came in to drop off her computer for repair.  What made my day is what she said.  In paraphrase, she said “I remember you.  I thought you looked familiar.  You came to repair our computer six years ago.  I remember you because you were excellent: you repaired it and you didn’t have to come back again, unlike most others”.  We had lost touch years ago, but was she ever happy to find me again.

It sure made my day and also reminded me what we’re all about.  We do our best to make sure you don’t have to keep bringing the computer back for repair over and over again for the same problem.  We pride ourselves in being good at what we do and our level of great service.  If it’s not right, our promise to you is that we’ll make it right at no charge to you.  As our (pending registered) trademark states, “we fix it or it’s free!”.  When you have a computer problem work with our friendly, qualified technicians one on one and let us give you the final solution.

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The importance of reliability

Tonight I was sent the link to an aging, yet excellent, video that demonstrates the progression of technology.  You can view it to the right of this post.  On the surface it presents fascinating facts and figures of how technology has progressed and how much technology (and in specific the computer) has become an every day household tool.  Between the lines a different message can be extracted from it as well.  It speaks, in essence, of how much we use and depend on the computer and thus, in abstract, how important it is for the computer to be reliable.

Much focus has been placed on cheap, disposable computers.  If it breaks, simply dispose of it and buy another one.  The development of unreliable computers has created a market for ”extended warranties”.  So successful has that campaign become that in Canada we currently dispose of over 118,000 computers a day.  Over 90% of those currently end up in landfills.  However, there are more problems associated with branding the computer as a cheap, disposable commodity, issues that hit closer to home.  These issues include:

1. data loss from hardware failures
2. down time
3. lost productivity
4. increased expense
5. plain grief and headache

At Northern Protocol, we don’t believe computers should be a burden.  They should be a useful, dependable tool to allow us to be more productive.  Our focus is on reliability and long term solutions.  Our goal is to keep you up and running, to prevent failures, data loss, loss of productivity, etc.  We endeavor, through repairs, sales of reliable product, resale of off lease product and recycling to;

• Help you use the computer as a tool to free you of particular chores and problems;
• Keep you productive and connected, preserve your data and save you headaches and money;
• Keep as much electronic waste out of the landfills as we can.

At Northern Protocol, we’re here to help you.  When you have a computer problem, come and see us.  Work with our friendly, qualified technicians one on one and let us give you the final solution.

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Why buy from an authorized dealer?

As many are now aware, we’re authorized dealers for several manufacturers, including Microsoft, Engenius, OCZ/PC Power & Cooling, Asus, Fujitsu, Seagate, Panda, etc. While some big box stores and online stores sell some of these products, they’re not factory authorized to do so. Although it may seem as no big deal, the difference is in the end user experience.

Perhaps the biggest example I ever saw was Tiger Direct selling Dell computers. They portrayed in their descriptions that the product was new (when in fact it was old, outdated stock purchased from third parties) with Dell support and warranty for the end user. This, of course, wasn’t the case. Dell sued them to get them to stop.

A great example, closer to home, is Fujitsu. They often offer an extra two year warranty incentive for customers that purchase their laptops. However, that deal is only available to the end user IF the vendor is an authorized Fujitsu dealer. There are only a couple of them in Central Ontario of which we’re one.

Asus is another interesting example. For some time big box stores attempted to sell Asus. The catch, what they didn’t tell you, is that they’re not authorized to touch them if anything goes wrong with them (doing so will void your warranty). They also don’t tell you that they squeeze Asus on price so Asus only gives one year warranty for any laptop they sell. When you buy a laptop from Northern Protocol, you get a free 2 year Asus warranty with 1st year accidental damage warranty.

There are other perks. If they need some minor repairs, we can fix them in house. Asus will send us the parts. Any issues where we need to send an Asus laptop away (even if it’s one we didn’t sell), we send them to Markham. The turnaround time is exceptionally quick. Asus takes good care of our customers.

Engenius is another example. There are several vendors out there that sell the Engenius brand, including some big, well known online Canadian vendors. However, they’re not factory authorized to sell them. They bring them in grey market from the United States (some buy from Canada, but the wholesaler that sells them to them brings them in gray market from the US). On the surface that doesn’t appear to be a problem….until you need warranty. Engenius Canada will NOT honor the warranty, you have to send them back to the US. We buy our units directly from Engenius Canada. If you have a warranty or technical support issue, you call Engenius in Markham and they’ll take care of you.

These are some of many reasons why you should buy from an authorized dealer. Of course there’s also familiarity with the product and our now infamous after sale service. We’re here to help you and as authorized dealers of many leading brands, we’ll help you find the product that’s just right for you and make sure you get the service after the sale as you need it.

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An interesting lesson in service

I’m a business owner (and as surely as the day is long, I’m not perfect at it), but I’m also a consumer. Everywhere I go I find that I’m strangely vigilant about the business. I look for those subtle things. I analyze what I like and don’t like about the location, the service, even those little small nuances that make the business what it is.

I like eating at Cora’s. Excellent food, always fresh, pleasant staff and a bright and cheery atmosphere. I look at the placemats. Rather than a few stock pictures and a price list, I’m met with a smiling face and a bunch of interesting tidbits that I rather enjoy reading while I’m waiting for my food to arrive. I even brought a couple home with me so I could read them again.

I guess what I’m saying is that I always make mental notes about what I like and don’t like, then strive to incorporate the stuff I do like into my own business. That mentality of “treating others the way you want to be treated” strikes time and time again…hopefully to the benefit of our clients.

I bought a bed from a local company. I suppose I could have bought it from Sleep Country, but I didn’t simply because the “sale to beat all sales” every week grows weary after a while and it made me doubt their credibility. Instead I decided to go for another, smaller chain. I like the bed and everything, but I was very dismayed by how it was handled. They gave me a great price, I paid and left, thinking I’d have it in a couple of weeks as it was special ordered. I had no problems waiting as long as I was given the heads up.

Well, the promised date came and went, with no bed. Two more weeks passed and still no bed. A call to the store informed me that there’d been a mistake and I’d have it in a couple of days. I was disappointed, sure, but these things happen. A week came and went. Finally I got a call that my bed had arrived and while setting a date for delivery I was informed I owed money. That’s odd, I thought. I paid for it in full at time of ordering. The lady said she’d look into it and call me back. When she did, I found out that I owed $3.80 for HST on the delivery because they were delivering it on July 2, one day after the HST kicked in.

There’s a point to this story, honestly. The point is this. It was a real kick in the pants to be told I owed $4.00 when the delay was their own doing. It’s not even the $4.00, it’s the concept of the thing that was utterly dismaying. I made a note to myself. I would never make a client pay for my mistakes and I would never nickel and dime them to death either. If I quote a price, I’m going to live up to it, whether it’s $4.00 or $100. I won’t forget how I felt… and I’ll certainly endeavor not to let my clients feel the same way.

It’s not always the big things that make our experience a positive one, something that makes us want to return time and again. Sometimes it’s as simple as a couple of toonies.

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